The Way It Goes
by DemonHuntress
Summary: *Complete*The (hopefully) awaited sequel to Ice and War (read that first). You wanted Ami/Heero romance, you got it, and a fight with an insane maniac who not only controls both time and space but is out for blood. Review please.
1. In Which It Is Introduced

The Way It Goes

By: DemonHuntress

Disclaimer: SM and GW do not belong to me. I don't think I'm too disappointed. But the time hounds are mine.

Summary: The awaited sequel to Ice and War in which we see Ami and Heero's love, and their fight against an insane manic who not only controls both time and space but is out for blood.

Rating: PG-13

AN: Read, enjoy, and review!

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How long had it been since she was this happy? Since everyday became a new adventure she looked forward to instead of dreaded? Since she couldn't wait to get out of bed every morning because she knew there was someone there? Since she had someone she could turn to and joke with and be around whenever? Since she had someone to hold on to, to care for and be cared for? Someone she could love and be loved in return? 

She couldn't remember.

But it didn't matter now, now that she had him. A friendship off to a rocky start had blossomed into romance and now she thanked kami-sama every day for giving him to her. Or her to him, whichever way it worked they had each other and that was all that mattered to either of them. With a sigh of pure bliss she intertwined her hand with his and rested her head on his shoulder, smiling as she felt his fingers trace the underside of her palm. In less than two years she had gone from millennia of loneliness to a sap and a romantic. Dammit, she was in love. And Ami was relishing every minute of it.

He couldn't believe his luck. Heero ran the thought over in his head once again. He could never believe his luck, not when it came to her. Here he was, a soldier and a killer, holding a veritable goddess in his arms. He had never felt worthy of her, and told her so, but she would only laugh and kiss him and he'd shut up. He'd do anything for those kisses. The battle-hardened Heero Yuy had gone soft. And truthfully? He didn't give a shit. He loved her, it was that simple.

Ami sighed with happiness, linking her arm through his and leaning her head on his shoulder. They had officially been a couple for a year now, a year today, and it had been on of the best days she could remember in her thousands of years of living. It had started out simply enough, early that morning he had snuck across the alley to her home and laid a trail of roses back to his door where he greeted her for a day of fun. They went to all the sights post-war Tokyo had to offer, ate at the best restaurants in town, and finished it all off with a long walk in the park that night. Now strolling through the trees, arm in arm with the man she loved, Ami knew she had never been happier.

"Hey," Heero whispered softly, nudging her just a little bit, "You wanna sit down? There's a bench right over there."

She nodded, then uncharacteristically giggled as he swept her off her feet and carried her over to the place he had designated. He just sat there, making no move to put her down as he held her close to himself and she kept her arms tight around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder. "I have never been happier," she told him truthfully, pulling her head away from him only to kiss him once more. Public lewdness be damned, she didn't care.

Heero smiled gently down at her as their lips parted, thanking his lucky stars for finding his mysterious neighbor. She was his life-line now, really, he knew he didn't have much else to live for outside of his ex-teammates. But with them each living on their own in the far corners of the world she was the one close for him to hold onto. "You know what I think?" he asked her, his voice teasing.

"I didn't know you did think." Her tone was equally good-natured and joking.

Looking past her, his face suddenly paled slightly beneath his already light skin. "I think we've got trouble." The words came out harsher than he expected, hoarsely whispered in an effort to be heard and yet not detected. "Your kind of trouble." Ami turned to see what he meant, only a little confused, then her face went slack in surprise. Over her shoulder about twenty feet the air itself seemed to be parting to make way for the blinding light that shone past. Dark shades of gray intermingled with swirls of black and purple was streaked all through it only to be followed by blood-stained hues of crimson.

Almost possessed by the sight in front of her, she got to her feet and stepped nearer as if to inspect it, thinking she might know what it was. Heero followed, going closer than she and reaching forward until his fingertips were mere inches away from the light source. "Don't touch it!" Ami fairly shrieked, smacking his hand away, "Did your years at war teach you nothing about strange things? It's a portal!" 

Still, they both watched fascinated as the colors took over, gradations of purple and emerald filling in more and more. The tints turned harsher, darker, with streaks of black integrating themselves into the mess. Sparkles of light danced among them, their twinkling brightness not in the least bit comforting. Amazed, Heero stared on as shapes began to force their way through, bulges of olive gray with swirls of purple coming towards him. He was so completely caught up in them he stumbled a few feet as a surprisingly strong arm wrapped around him and pulled him backwards.

"Get back!" Ami ordered, forcing his head to duck down as she yanked him along, "And don't touch them!"

"Touch what?" he asked, confused, until he saw what was happening.

The shapeless bulges were taking form and slowly but surely making their way through. Three finally forced them selves to their side to hover a few inches above the ground, growling, their dog-like shapes standing several feet high. Each retained its own appearance and color, ranging in the dark hues of green, purple, and gray, their eyes like glittering obsidian in their malice. Ami had gone completely pale. The words she whispered were taut and almost forced. "Time hounds."

He was only more confused. "What?"

She still kept one arm across his chest as if to keep him back. "Spatial displacement given shape," she told him, summing it up in only a few words. "Anything that touches them is . . . gone. Elsewhere. Anywhere. Whether it's a leaf, a shoe, your hand." She let her words sink in with him, watching as his eyes went wide. "They're after someone," she whispered, "Pray it's not us."

Too bad. The moment the dogs heard them talk they rotated their heads in the couple's general vicinity, growling once more as they approached their prey. "Kuso," Ami hissed, digging for the one thing that could get them out of this mess. She wore it constantly on a chain around her neck for fear of it getting lost. A time key. "There's only one way to get them out of here."

Of course he wanted to know. "And that is . . . "

She said nothing to him, only whispered a few words under her breath as she held the key aloft. A portal similar to the first opened before them just as the one behind closed shut, effectively trapping the hounds on Earth. She had to get them out of there. Linking arms with Heero once more, she pulled him with her. "Jump!"

They fell through the portal, leaving three time hounds loose on their planet.

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ok, time hounds were my own invention, i hope i explained them well enough. well i thought they were a neat idea.

review!


	2. In Which We Learn Who To Not Like

Chapter 2

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Where they landed was a place unlike any other Heero had ever seen. The same colors as made up both the portals and dogs covered the entirety of the area here as far as the eye could see. there were no walls, no boundaries, and yet somehow it seemed to stop after a certain distance, as if the no-existent floor curved up and around in a gigantic bubble. Ami, however, knew exactly where she was.

"Setsuna-chan?" she called, and Heero figured it out. Setsuna, Sailor Pluto, guarded the Gates of Time. That was where they were.

A figure approached in the distance and Ami seemed more than relieved. The woman came towards them, carrying something in her hand but it wasn't until she was much closer that Heero could tell what she looked like. She was tall, very tall, about Trowa's height, with hair the color of dark jade falling down past her knees. In one hand she carried a tall staff topped with a large jewel and she wore a sailor fuku of deep purple and green. And although Ami seemed to care for this woman greatly, there was nothing friendly in the hate blazing from her ruby eyes.

Ami seemed to sense this too. "Setsuna-chan? Is something the matter?"

The taunting tone in the woman's voice did not bode well. "'Is something the matter?'" she echoed, sneering, "I'd say so."

"Setsuna-chan?"

Sailor Pluto whirled on the senshi of ice. "Don't you dare think you can call me that," she hissed.

Ami jumped back, her eyes going wide with surprise. "What happened?"

Again, the older woman scorned her. "'What happened?' What do you think happened. Use the brain inside that overly-large head of yours. I found the way to power. The way to everything I ever wanted. Death. Revenge. A life of my own. And I found it in the one place I had never thought to look until it brought itself to me." She paused for dramatic effect. "The Negaverse."

Heero laughed. "'The Negaverse?' What the hell kind of name is that?"

At the same time, Ami was forming a retort of her own. "SHABON SPRAY!" Missiles of ice, their power increased ten fold, shot toward the ancient senshi who barely managed to throw up a wall in time to block them. But it blocked every single one and the attack she hurled back nearly knocked Ami off her feet.

"Ice bitch!" Setsuna roared, fast approaching them

The senshi of Mercury had barely restrained tears in her eyes as she flew at her old friend, fists flying. "You killed them!" she screamed, "You killed them, you killed them you killed them! They died and you could have stopped it! You murdering shit, you killed them!" She landed blow upon blow on her, never halting in her rain of slurs and accusations until Setsuna blew her back a good twenty feet. It was then that the time hounds reappeared, the portal closing behind them.

Ami struggled back to her feet, eyes burning with hatred and hurt as they watched the time senshi gently dust herself off. The three hounds surrounded the couple only to be joined by more until they formed a complete circle. Biting her lip to hold back tears she once more lifted the time key. A portal opened directly beneath the two of them, dropping them out of the hell-hole before death jumped them. Instead the hounds landed atop each other as the exit closed.

Setsuna walked to where her ex-teammate had once stood, frowning deeply until lines appeared across her forehead. She glared at the spot in disappointment at their escape. It wouldn't be for long. "You weren't thinking, Ami-chan," she muttered insanely to herself, "That was my key you used. I can track it anywhere, any time. And then you'll be dead."

Heero twisted as he fell, making sure to land on his feet as did Ami beside him. He almost recognized the place he was in, it looked somewhat like Tokyo but also different. A tower in the distance he knew he had never seen before, and the air and streets were relatively clean, not smog filled like the ones he knew. Not twenty feet from them was an arcade, next to it, on their side, a stand selling some kind of reading article. He had heard of them before, seemed they had been called newspapers or something of the like. Ami immediately headed over to it, looking rather shocked as she glanced at it. He walked up along side her. "What is it?"

She shook her head. "Not what, when. We're in Tokyo. In the year 2002." 

**************

Review responses:

suesei: Cool, one of my 'Ice and War' fans is back. Glad you like the story!

Serena Yuy: *That* was a reaction. Don't worry, its coming.

Kaiya: It's the person that's seriously helping me out with this fic (thank you so much for that!) Well, now you know how she knows the hounds. And 2x4s rock my world.

Ummeinoko: Glad you like it, keep reading!

ellie: I think Ami and Heero are rare because a lot of people don't seem them fitting together. So glad you liked the original!

huffpuff: I had to do a sequel, I think people might have tied me to my computer until I did (its been threatened) I love it when you guys return to read the sequel. And yea, I guess Setsuna is here. Just not how you probably expected . . . 

fluffy pink bouncy bunny: I said it once, I'll say it again. Love the pen name, creativity rocks my world. It's not just *a* universe, it's going to be several. And the time hounds are pretty much unstoppable unless Pluto calls them off. They're pure energy.

Petra: Wow. Another fan of 'Ice and War.' You guys just keep coming back. 

Ayana: That's probably the first time I've been called kawaii. Been called cute, but never kawaii. Keep reading!


	3. In Which Trouble Is Faced

Chapter 3

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Tokyo. 2002. They echoed in his mind as shades of her past, when all of her friends had been alive. This had been before the one called Minako had died, back before things even got really dangerous. He only hoped that they had hit some alternate timeline and not her own. For her to see her friends now after getting brutally attacked by the last of them . . . it would not be good.

Trembling slightly, Ami took his hand in hers, guiding them both across the street to the arcade. The sign above was written in an older form of Japanese he did not understand but the posters in the windows made it painfully obvious what type of building it was. She pushed the door open with one hand and poked her head inside, looking around several times before stepping in and bringing him with her. Keeping her head down she slid into a corner booth. He sat directly across from her, her hand still tight in his. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Ami-san? Is that you?"

Heero looked up to see one of the boys who worked behind the counter start to approach them, fiddling with the straps on his apron. His blond hair hung askew over his face and his blue eyes shone with life and curiosity, much like Quatre's. He approached the couple seated in the booth with an inquisitive look on his face, but even as he called Ami's name again she did not turn around until he tapped her shoulder. When she did face him, her features were totally expressionless. "Excuse me?"

The boy blushed. "Gomen nasi. I thought you were one of our regulars here, you look quiet a bit like her. My apologies for disturbing you."

She smiled. "It's ok," and turned back around to face Heero. Once the boy was out of earshot she spoke again. "That was Motoki. He used to be the reason we stopped by here all the time. Usagi, Makoto, and Minako all had huge crushes on him, but he already had a girlfriend." Heero nodded, understanding. So this was the past after all, but it seemed Ami was not finished speaking. She was giving him the explanation he almost didn't want to ask for, knowing how much it would hurt her to admit. "I believe Setsuna has been possessed by the Negaverse, our main opposition. Most likely she did not know what was going on when it happened and now it's turned her against me. Us.

"The best I can tell is, she's been under its control for quite some time now. I often wondered why she never foretold their deaths. Perhaps Minako's threw her for a loop, she only watches the one timeline that would take us to Crystal Tokyo, but after that she should have known beforehand what was going to happen. Basically," she took a deep breath, collecting her thoughts and composure, "She let them die. All of them. They're gone because of some hidden dark side used against us." Now the tears were painfully obvious in her eyes but she would not let them fall. She never had. "That's why they were never reborn."

Heero didn't really understand all that she meant but he got the gist of it. In a moment of uncharacteristic pure sweetness he reached across the table and cupped her chin in one hand, kissing both her eyes as if to take away the tears that threatened to fall. Her response was a weak smile, but it let him know he was helping. And that was all he wanted.

Suddenly her eyes went wide once more. "Kuso!" She ducked her head down against the table, pulling her hair from its tie to let it fall across her face and hide her features. "They're here," she hissed to him, trying desperately to keep from being seen. Confused, Heero turned slightly around in his chair, just enough for him to see the group of girls that entered, giggling, through the main door.

In the front of the group was a blonde, her hair done up in strange looking odangos at the top of her head. Laughing along side her was another girl with yellow hair. The two could have passed for twins. Following behind them was a raven-haired girl who buried her face in her hands at the pure insanity of her two friends and last was a girl much taller whose brunette locks were pulled into a high ponytail. He knew who they were, from not only Ami's reaction but earlier research as well. Usagi, Minako, Rei, and Makoto. Sailors Moon, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter. No wonder Ami was hiding.

After what seemed like an eternity the girls finally took a seat not far from the couple in the corner. Once they seemed settled and properly distracted, Ami stood carefully and silently so as not to attract any attention to herself and the man beside her. The girls' table was on their way out and they both prayed not to be noticed. 

No such luck. A hand reached out and tugged at Ami's arm as she passed. "Ami-chan? I thought you were at cram school," Usagi said.

Makoto laughed. "Not out with a guy!"

Ami turned to her old friends, keeping her face totally blank. "Gomen, I am not Ami."

Usagi blushed furiously. "Gomen nasi, gomen ne, gomen! You look a lot like my friend."

She smiled and nodded. "It is not the first time I have been confused with this Ami. Ja ne."

"Ja ne," chorused all the girls.

**************

more review responses:

drifter: nope, sorry. ami will be fixing no timelines—its too dangerous. anything could happen and she knows better than to risk it. and I liked making setsuna the villain too.

kaiya: oooh! a new life philosophy. I keep an eye out for those all the time. and I seriously love my villain. and although I said in my review of one of your fics that I wasn't gonna post this chapter, I did anyways. just update that 'ami gone psycho' fic. please?

rogue angel barton: despite slight grammatical, thanks for the positive review! just a side note, were you the one who wrote 'eye of the midnight storm'?

d-chan's ice-queen: glad you liked it. and if your friend's bugging you, just tell her to lay off. as much as it doesn't work for me it's the best advice I can give.

suisei no mitsukai: people read my author's notes!?! wow. ::cheers:: I HAVE FAN(S?)!

cade: working on it.

minimerc: ami's coping as best she can, but I'm afraid she's tied up in Tokyo at the moment and visiting hours have been strictly reduced. and I'm writing as we speak.

fluffy pink bouncy bunny: whoa, that was a lot of questions. lets see what I can do. ::cracks knuckles as she sets down to work:: ahem. ami blew a fuse, but she was right--sets didn't outright kill the girls but she did nothing to prevent it when she obviously could have. I'm afraid the rest of the pilots can't follow--no time key. I'm thinking about an inuyasha crossover, but the rest will probably be the result of an over-active imagination. and I could never stop writing. it's one of my obsessions. 'nothing but praise'? seriously? cool!!!

sakura: next time, hit her back

mona: an excellent writer? seriously? woohoo! (and the best way to stop whining is a swift mallet to (think akane))

fate's child: no fixing of the timeline--no one but me knows what would happen. glad you like the story!

I've been planning pluto for the part of the villain since I was halfway through 'ice and war.' basically the sequel is an answer to the questions the first part left. my main question was 'pluto is the time senshi. couldn't she have done something to keep the scouts alive? and thus the idea came about. glad you all like it and don't stop reviewing!!


	4. In Which Much Explaining Is Done

Chapter 4

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Rei looked at Usagi. Usagi looked at Minako. Minako looked at Makoto. And Makoto looked back at Rei. Each girl had the same expression on her face--one of utter bewilderment and confusion. For almost a full moment they were all quiet until the self-proclaimed Goddess of Love broke the silence and voiced what they were all thinking. "That was weird."

Usagi nodded. "I know! She looked just like Ami!"

"But her hair was longer," supplied the ever fashion-conscious Minako.

"She was a little taller," Makoto added.

Rei wasn't to be outdone. "Her aura was somewhat different."

All heads turned to their resident priestess-in-training. "How so?" Makoto asked.

The raven-haired girl made a face. "Auras are hard to explain," she told them, thinking carefully about what she was saying and how to phrase it, "Normally Ami's aura is pale blue in color, very pensive and about as shy as auras get. But this girl? Much darker blue, almost navy, for one thing. Still thoughtful but more collected and strategic. And, I don't know, she was . . . " Rei paused, thinking hard about how to say this. The words just weren't coming. " . . . dangerous maybe? I couldn't quite place a finger on it. And she was sad. Very sad. Somehow, seeing us made her sadder."

Usagi stuck out her tongue in frustration. "Well, pooh. That gets us no where. But Ami might know."

Minako nodded. "We'll catch her after cram school." The other girls agreed.

***

"Two years ago, in this time, each of the inner senshi was given a power boost," Ami supplied to Heero's unasked question. She wasn't too sure what it was but she answered it anyways. "Mars could extinguish fires, Minako could charm her way into anything, Usagi got a new attack, and Makoto could retain her super-strength even in her normal form. As the weakest of the group-"

Heero cut her off. "No way you were the weakest. I've seen you pissed and that was anything but weak."

The returning smile was feeble, almost wistful. "What you've seen was Sailor Mercury as the only remaining scout on earth after two millennia of improvements but that's just a little beside the point. At the time the only one weaker than me was Chibi Usa and she didn't count. So they gave me two boosts--an ice javelin that replenished every time it was used and an enhanced memory. In effect, I'm a Recorder."

'She never ceases to amaze me.' It was the only thought that ran through his head. Recorders were very, very rare. People with such incredible memories that anything they saw, heard, knew, anything they experienced was stored in their consciousness for access at any time. They didn't forget a single thing . . . and she had been a Recorder for two thousand years. 'Kami-sama,' he thought, 'That's a long memory. Talk about being able to hold a grudge.'

But Ami wasn't finished talking. "Here, in 2002, I have those boosts. I remember very clearly the afternoon the rest of the girls approached me, saying that they had seen and talked to some woman in the arcade they had mistaken for me. Rei specifically said that she had a rather different aura, and not necessarily a good one. When money was stolen from my family's bank account by someone who looked exactly like me-"

Once again, Heero had to interrupt. "Perhaps it was you," he supplied."

Her eyes went wide. "Simply put, Heero-chan, that's brilliant." She slung her arms around his neck and kissed him soundly before sitting back down on her bench. "That's what happened!" she told him excitedly, "I stole money from myself. It's like we were already here only we weren't but really we were and . . . crap, I hate all this time stuff." Ami managed to crack a decent smile. "You, my love, are a genius. Now come on, we've got a robbery to plan."

It didn't take too long, since technically they had already done it. It was simple enough, an easy get-in-get-out without any real offensive techniques needed. Arm in arm they walked to the Tokyo International Bank where Heero waited outside while Ami went in to get the money. She tied her hair loosely behind her neck, trying to draw as little attention as possible to its length. Slipping back into her shy persona, she grinned once at Heero before disappearing inside.

Slowly and carefully she walked up to a teller, looking up at him with a smile in her eyes. "Konnichiwa, Matsura-san."

He glanced down. "Why if it isn't Miss Mizuno Ami. You haven't come by in months!"

She ducked her head, blushing. "Hai, I know. I have been very busy. Mother would have come today but she was stuck in a meeting. We're planning a trip up north and she sent me to make a withdrawal." Digging in her pocket she pulled out the slip of paper on which she had forged her mother's signature. "250.000 yen [A/N: $2,000, I think], please."

He glanced at the paper and then back at her. "That's quite a large sum, little lady. But you wait and I'll be right back."

Fifteen minutes later she and Heero were walking back to the park with two-hundred and fifty thousand yen cash. "I wish I could show you everything in my time," she said with a soft sigh as they strolled around, arm in arm. "But when Setsuna tracks her key down and sends the hounds we have to go."

"So we'll be zapping back up to the gates, ditching the hounds, and coming down somewhere else?"

Ami smiled gratefully. "Exactly. Truthfully there isn't any way to destroy them. They're pure energy and totally intangible. Not that anything could touch them anyways." She shuddered. "I've told you, if something hits it, it gets teleported away. Layer by layer. The whole object doesn't go at once, pieces get taken as they touch it. I've seen it happen."

He had one other question. "How long should it take her to track us down."

Another sigh. "No idea. If she were sane, we'd be dead. But with Setsuna acting as irrationally as she is, it could take anywhere from a few hours to a few days. We do have an advantage over her, however." He brightened and she continued. "When the Negaverse possessed her and increased her powers, it also increased the powers of everything she controlled. Including the time keys." She showed him the one around her neck. "This thing now has inter-dimensional abilities."

**************

yes, I did take the idea of a Recorder from some 'star wars' novel. it's not mine. whoops.

and as for the questions you raised . . . 

fluffy pink bouncy bunny: no need to know anything specific about inuyasha, just the plot and characters. and you might want to read my inuyasha fic, cause i'm probably gonna use this story to follow up on it.

violet eyes: personally, i am a quatre/ami fan (i'm a fan of anything but wufei/ami) but you are entitled to your opinions. as to my opinions? down with usa-baka

rogue angel barton: are you joking?!? I LOVE EYE OF THE MIDNIGHT STORM! (note to all: read it. now) all the 'z's make your reviews a little hard to read, that's my only complaint, i'm probably the worst at grammar. btw . . . when are you going to finish 'eye of the midnight storm'? or have i just not checked it recently enough?

fyre eye: cool name. no threats, please. flames i'm okay with, but i gotta serious problem with threats. 

kaiya: i'd be glad to help. as soon as i can get my hands on more computer time. i'm kinda banned at the moment (don't ask). and a quote for you . . . mary had a little lamb, the doctor was surprised. (A/N: ew!)

fate's child: but that's my normal chapter length!!!!

minimerc: you will know, you will know . . . in later chapters. The g-boys will show up, but i don't know how yet.

suisei no mitsukai: the problem is that if ami runs into herself, they both cancel out (check the last chapter of 'I & W', see what happened to zoisite)

huffpuff: i think this chapter might have answered your questions for me.

sakura: the mallet thing was my attempt at humor. now i wish i could take my own advice and hit my friends back. 


	5. In Which The Author Is At A Loss For A T...

Chapter 5

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Inter-dimensional abilities. Having been around Ami for the past year he had gotten used to all the stories of her past she told him, stories that dealt with things magical and completely unexplainable but what she was telling him now was on the verge of going over his head. He understood what they were doing: keeping ahead of Sailor Pluto and her hounds until they came up with some way to defeat them. But beyond that . . . 

Sailor senshi were immortal. He already knew that. But evidently, if killed, they could be reborn in a different time and Setsuna controlled that. And as Setsuna had been possessed by the Negaverse (he still thought it was a stupid name) she had not only stopped anyone from preventing the deaths of the scouts, she had never arranged for them to be reincarnated. She had effectively murdered the girls.

And the whole deal was completely unpredictable. They never knew when or where the hounds would show up, when they did all they could do was zap back up to the time gates long enough to trap the dogs there and then leave again only to be found once more. The realities they hit blew his mind. Some didn't seem like they could be possible, even Ami admitted she was shocked by them. They were just so . . . ~different~. But so far, that first one was the worst for them.

Once they were safely away from the bank, Ami nearly had a breakdown. She wanted nothing more than to warn her friends of their impending doom and Setsuna's betrayal, in fact she wanted to so badly that Heero had to hold her back. He became the voice of reason for a few moments at that time. She couldn't tamper with the past, anything could happen and it would be completely out of her control. The senshi could die even more horrible deaths than they had. The entire world could be obliterated, billions of innocent lives lost. Time would be permanently altered and could possibly turn out for the worse. There was nothing she could do. Ami almost wept at that realization, but yet again she kept her tears to herself.

Not long after that little spiel of his, the time hounds had shown up. Luckily, though, when they had 'ported up to the gates Pluto was too distracted to notice they were there until they were gone once more with the dogs trapped behind them, howling in frustration and their mistress screaming right along with them. The lovers landed in a world foreign to them both.

On one side, grass stretched about twenty feet before shooting upwards to form a forest full of trees, growing thick and dense. On the other, a well, covered in ivy stood three feet high and on closer inspection was seen to go down at least another teen feet below the ground. Wind whistled through branches and ducked under leaves, showing off the color in all of natures finest. It was a beautiful world, pollution-free. It was a world neither of them recognized.

Then suddenly, hurtling towards them from the direction of the forest came a barrage of sounds. Yelling was the most distinguishable they heard, followed by a dull thud and a long string of curses. Heero let one eyebrow raise, impressed. He hadn't figured there were that many obscenities in only one language. Ami gave him a strange look and, as the sounds moved closer, pulled him with her behind the well.

Just then, two figures emerged from the trees. The first was a young girl, peddling furiously on her bike towards the well. Her pretty face was scrunched up in both concentration and anger. Every few seconds she would turn around and yell to someone over her shoulder, tossing a long mane of black hair behind her. Chasing after her was a boy her age, his snarls and growls much like those of the time hounds. Long, white locks of hair billowed after him as he ran, his gold eyes (incredibly sexy gold eyes, Ami noted) glinting with barely restrained rage. He was the one doing most of the yelling. And most of the cursing.

"Get back here, Kagome! We have shards to find!"

"I'm going home! I have a test this afternoon, and thanks to you I haven't studied."

"I said, come back! You aren't going anywhere, wench."

"Ouswari!"

"OW! Bitch!"

With the one word from the girl's mouth, the boy seemed to trip over absolutely nothing and plummet face-first into the ground. There he was held, kicking and screaming and writhing and cursing until the spell's hold on him was released and he could chase after her some more. "I'll get you for that!"

"Ouswari! Ouswari, ouswari, OUSWARI!"

"OW, OW, OW, OW! YOU BITCH!"

Ami and Heero exchanged a look of utter confusion. What was this place they had come to? A girl in a twenty-first century school uniform? A guy chasing her, wearing an ancient Japanese kimono? And a pink kimono at that? They didn't know whether they had gone farther into the past or into the future or into a whole other dimension, but in what kind of place could a single word hold so much power? They both shrugged and turned back around to watch what was going on.

Only to find two pairs of eyes, one blue and one gold, staring down at them. The owner of the latter was the one to speak.

"Who the hell are you freaks?"

**************

and more review responses:

huffpuff: yeah, i'm doing good work!!! anyways, i think i've figured out how they're going to destroy the hounds. and here's another reality!

rogue angel barton: nix on the threats, por favor. But i seriously do like that fic, and as this week is spring break for me, updating will halt until about Sunday the 31st.

serena yuy: look above

fate's child: i think i may have answered your question in this chapter

kaiya: i liked the whole destiny thing too. and . . . 'honesty is the best policy but insanity is a better defense.'

suisei no mitsukai: ami meeting ami would have been interesting, but i wanted to move them along to another reality

silverkeeper: don't worry, i like this fic too much to drop it

fluffy pink bouncy bunny: i think what i meant was that the g-boys won't be in that reality, but they will be around later. and so will the outers. and personally my favorite ami/? couple is ami/do, but that may just be me. glad you like the story!

sakura: it's not revenge its . . . okay, so it is revenge. but my vengance has yet to go into effect. keep reading!


	6. In Which The Chapter Is Very Short

Chapter 6

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'Ok, the gold eyes may be sexy but the attitude is not,' Ami concluded as she leveled her gaze to a smoldering glare. Neither of them was about to back down. The blue eyed girl, standing beside her white-haired companion, was getting quite bored with them both and smacked her friend upside the head. "Snap out of it, Inuyasha." She then turned to the two sitting on the ground. "Konnichiwa. I'm Higurashi Kagome and that's just Inuyasha, who are you?"

Ami smiled, glad to see that one of them had some semblance of civility. "Mizuno Ami, and this is Yui Heero. It is nice to meet you." She stood and shook hands with the other girl, who smiled broadly, letting her eyes light up. Inuyasha and Heero just glared at each other until Ami turned to help him to his feet. He accepted her hand and stood, wrapping an arm securely around her when he saw the dog-demon's gaze flicker across her. "Where are we?" she asked.

Kagome looked at her, puzzled. "Ancient Japan, the Warring States Period. How did you through the well?"

That shocked them both. "What?" Even their voices were in unison.

Kagome blinked several times, trying to sort things out. "So you traveled time but not through the well?"

Heero looked at Ami who looked back at him. She was the one to speak as he fell back on his old speech patterns. "We have another method of travel." She scrutinized Kagome's clothing, an old school sailor uniform much like what she had worn at Jubaan. Very similar, save for coloring and length. "Your clothes are late twentieth century, are they not?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

Ami smiled politely. "I went to school during that period, I remember it." Kagome opened her mouth to speak, but Ami cut her off. "Don't ask, it's a long story. But might you perhaps have a place we can stay for the time being?"

'A place to stay.' Kagome rolled the thought over in her mind. Certainly not at her house, but then again they couldn't get through the well. They weren't demons, but they could be working for them. Nothing was out of the ordinary about Heero, but Ami had an aura of power about her, not too unlike that of the youkai she had come across. Could they be trusted in Kaede's hut? Kagome looked over at Inuyasha who stared back at her. With a stifled sigh, she nodded. "There is a village nearby. Inuyasha can take you, but I have to go!" Then, with a delighted grin, she hopped past them and into the well. When Heero looked after her, she was gone.

Inuyasha's face had dropped considerably. "She left," he whispered softly, staring at the well in disbelief."

"Um," Ami tried to interrupt politely, "Could you perhaps show us where this village is?"

"Hum?" He looked back over at them, almost as if seeing them for the first time. "Fine, follow me."

And so they did.

The village was not far, after only a few minutes' walk they reached it. The people there stopped and stared, not at the hanyou but at the two people walking behind him. No one had seen clothing quite like theirs, even Kagome's was different. And Ami's blue hair attracted it's own fair share of attention, but she paid it no mind as she made her way to what must have been Kaede's hut.

Inside sat four people. One was older, pale skin wrinkled and white hair pulled into a loose bun. She wore the clothes of a miko and a patch covered one eye. Beside her sat a little boy with fox ears and a fluffy tail, wearing a blue vest and matching pants. On the other side of the small room the other two people sat, their arms around each other. The taller of the two was a man dressed in the robes of a houshi, with dark hair tied in a tight ponytail and a rosary wrapped around one arm. The other was a girl dressed in a ordinary kimono, her black hair loose and a cat demon curled in her lap. They all started as the three heads poked in through the door.

Inuyasha just grumbled as he sat down. "Feh. Kagome said they could stay."

Ami stepped inside, ushering Heero in behind her. "Konnichiwa, minna. I'm Mizuno Ami."

"Yui Heero." He offered his own name this time.

The dark-haired girl smiled. "Nice to meet you, Mizuno-san, Yui-san. I am Sango, this is Miroku, Lady Kaede, and Shippo." She gestured to each in the room. "If Kagome said that you could stay, you are welcomed by all of us." Much to the demon-huntress' surprise, Miroku made no pass at the lovely young girl standing in the doorway. Then again, ever since they had admitted their love for each other, he had kept his hands and comments to himself. (A/N: read 'Only In Dreams', by moi, to know what she's talking about.)

"Arigato, Sango-san," Ami told her, taking a seat facing the door and Heero sitting beside her. "We only need a place to stay for a day, maybe two but that's stretching it. We could be gone in a few hours."

Miroku made a somewhat puzzled face. "Why do you not know exactly?"

She smiled. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

Shippo laughed. "We've been through a lot of weird shit, lady. I doubt your story's much more."

Heero raised a sardonic eyebrow as he settled his gaze on the young fox-youkai. "Okay then. We're being chased by an insane maniac who controls time and space. She wants Ami dead and is sending her minions out after us wherever we go. Our only escape is to jump realities and ditch the hounds until they find us again. An hour ago we were in Ami's past and now we're in a completely different dimension. That weird enough?"

Jaws hung open all across the room. "I must say, that tis quite an adventure," Lady Kaede admitted.

**************

to all my readers:

how long do you want this story to be? Each reality is 2-3 chapters, so just tell me how many realities you want me to have and I'll average it out!

fluffy pink bouncy bunny: actually, i've got an idea for putting in the outers with the g-boys--coming soon, in fact!

rogue angel barton: confusing?? oops. glad it was funny though, that was my main objective.

Sakura: and i will keep writing.

kaiya: i think all my chapters are about that short, i have some disability that won't let me write long chapters. oh, and, 'clothes make the man. naked people have little to no influence on society.'

fate's child: inuyasha is my main anime love, glad you liked how i'm writing this.

violet eyes: you love my fics? COOL. anyways, i am writing more. i love writing more. it's an obsession.

petra: i had a whole hell of a lot of fun on spring break but now i'm back and in business. inuyasha already has his own infatuation (read Only In Dreams, by me) so there will be no love triangle. and i'm so seriously glad you like the story.

serena yuy: i updated as often as i can

sapphire taylor: inuyasha isn't going to think much of them, they aren't staying long but glad you like the story so much!


	7. In Which Two Snarling Dogs Are Left

Chapter 7

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Twenty-four hours later, they still remained in Feudal Japan, having not seen neither hide nor shiny hair of the time hounds. Once Lady Kaede had decided they were trustworthy enough to go off on their own, Heero went for a walk, bringing Ami along. He didn't want to leave her anywhere alone even though he knew she could protect herself, it was just something he felt deep down inside that he had to protect her. And besides all that, he wanted to be with her whenever possible. He loved her more than anything or anyone he had before. 

Now they sat in a spot they had found not thirty minutes into their walk. Not far from the village, a bit a ways through the forest, there was a small clearing, no more than ten feet in any direction, but it ended right at the edge of a short plateau facing west. So there they sat, the trees behind them and the grass under they, as they watched the sun set together. Ami had her head resting contently on her shoulder and her hand on his as he held her around the waist. This was the most peaceful they had been since the mess had started.

She sighed. "Sometimes I wish our world was like this," she whispered to him.

His response was just as hushed, his words tickling her ear. "Calm, tranquil, and unpolluted."

A short giggle. "Basically, yes. That's about it. But look . . . isn't it beautiful?"

And it was. The sun was no more than half below the horizon, what remained visible was a hemisphere of flame, playful yellows intertwining in each other only to spread out to darker oranges. A vibrant red took up another large portion of the sky until it faded into a dark, majestic purple and beyond that was black. Long shadows cast by trees below them danced through the luscious greens of nature. But Heero only had eyes for her.

"Yes," he agreed, "You are."

Again she laughed, a melodious sound he could never tire of hearing and a playful grin lit upon her face, making her only more beautiful in his eyes. "You are without a doubt the sweetest man I have ever known and I love you for it. Among other things." She kissed him briefly, her lips lingering near his. "I told you that lately?" Her tone was joking, but her meaning was not.

His was the same. "Want to make up for it?" He watched as her eyes lit up and before Ami even had time to respond he met her mouth with his in a gentle, butterfly kiss that soon began to heat up. She slowly wound her arms around his neck as his found their way to her waist, passion slowly increasing as he began to kiss his way down her throat. Her head arced, eyes clouded, and she buried her fingers deep in his hair before seeking out his lips with her own once more. 

"Feh. You stupid mortals."

Heero jumped at the same time she did, both of them whipping their heads around to face the intruder and both blushing like two high-schoolers caught necking in the bushes. At first glance he thought the man facing them from the forest was Inuyasha, but a second glimpse proved him wrong. This white haired youkai was much more . . . feminine looking than Inuyasha, and he had several stripes across each cheek. His style of clothing was much more refined and he had something fluffy thrown over one shoulder. "Where is Kagome?" he demanded.

Ami was just a little taken aback at his attitude. "How should we know?"

"I smell her on you. Now tell me where she is, bitch, or I, Sesshomaru, will gut you."

His arrogance was rewarded by a cage of ice.

And just before things began to get nasty, Inuyasha arrived. He was not at all in a good mood. "Kagome's not here," he answered tersely.

The other man, Sesshomaru, simply raised one eyebrow set on sardonic. "So my half-breed little brother has shown up to protect his love interest?" Ami and Heero exchanged a look that plainly said, 'well that explains a lot,' and went back to listening because the older demon was not done speaking. "You already lost, mutt. She chose me."

Then, from deeper in the forest, there came another sort of growling, this one much more guttural and menacing than either of the brothers could have managed at that point. Stifling a sigh, Ami stood and helped Heero to his feet, then turned to the quarreling youkai. "Don't mind us, we've just got more important matters to tend to. Inuyasha, tell Kagome thank you for getting us a place to stay and that I'm sorry I didn't get to know her better." In the silence that followed she and Heero stalked off into the trees and all Sesshomaru and Inuyasha saw from where they stood was a flash of light followed by a painful howl and then it went black once more.

The moment they landed, Ami had another portal ready and waiting for them to go back through once more. This time, however, Setsuna was there and alert when they arrived but still, Ami was quicker. She closed the original escape portal and opened another directly below her feet. Forcing a grin as she fell, Ami waved, saying, "Ja ne, Setsuna-chan!"

"Why you little-" was all they heard before the portal closed over their heads.

**************

****

ok I asked for 8 reviews, I got 6 so until I get 2 more, no chapter 8. I am laying down the law here. Sorry people. And how many more realities?!?

on with responses:

serena yuy: i'm not sure if anyone's ever reviewed my stuff as 'kewl' before. anyways, keep reviewing!

fluffy pink bouncy bunny: woah. lesse here, i don't read evangline (heard it's good), don't read sakura, or that yu yu whatever. am a die-hard starwars fan and that crossover could become a possibility. seriously, thanks for the idea. and sorry, but Heero won't be monosyllabic much longer--he's no fun to write that way.

sakura&mona: mallets rock my world. but don't hit the poor thing too hard.

minimerc: dbz, slayers are no. i don't know either of them well enough. and i think i'm gonna stick with one takahashi--i've got plenty of SM/GW ideas going to last me. but thanks for reviewing!

kaiya: 'if there's something around here more important than my ego, i want it hunted down and shot.'

suisei no mitsukai: i think i've finally learned to spell your name without having to check back every third letter!!! anyways, 3-4 realities is a definite. glad you like the story.

lizarloo: *somebody's* got their panties in a twist. It's called a coincidence, look it up if you have to. read: couples are not copyrighted, nor are they uncommon.

And about that vampire fic: I've started it, but the characters aren't too nice. As in seriously not very nice. And I will state right here and now that yes, I got the basic idea of a vampire fic from rogue angel barton but none of the ideas are taken from her work.

Example of how my characters are evil:

-as usual, ami's in charge. Now she's just a ruthless killer

-hotaru is a mute murderer

-haruka's a druggie

still want me to continue??


	8. In Which Sad Things Come

Chapter 8

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Bubbles escaped her mouth in a violent rush of air as she hit the water but she did not panic. Though it was not her element, though she was the senshi of ice, she had the power to breathe underwater. Something, she realized as she watched Heero flounder beside her, he did not have. So taking a deep breath and holding as much oxygen as she could, she brought him up to eye level and sealed her lips over his as she forced as much air as possible into his mouth. She repeated this several times before she managed to kick her way to the surface, pulling Heero along with her. Holding tight to each other they kept their heads above the water, grateful to see the shore not far off to the left. They reached it in a matter of minutes.

Neither collapsed onto the beach, it had not been that far a swim, but they were both slightly out of breath. Ami was the first to regain her composure, straightening up and shaking some water from her long hair. "You recognize this place, Heero-chan?" she asked, looking around. It seemed rather ordinary, but the machinery she could not identify but it did not look like any from their time.

He shook his head. "Not at all."

"Well," she didn't sound too sure of herself, "A newspaper helped us one time. What do you say we try it again?"

His response was a slight shrug. "Sounds good to me."

Fifteen minutes later, they each stood in front of a computer screen, reading down the latest news. Tokyo again, it seemed to be a popular place--maybe because it was the place both Ami and Setsuna were most familiar with. This time, though, it was not 2002. Instead, it was the year 3428 and that night several famous people were going to be in town. According to the news, it was the mourn the death of two good friends.

Two world-famous violinists, Michiru Kaioh and Quatre Reberba Winner, would be in attendance, along with their respective girlfriends--race-car driver Haruka Ten'ou and model Minako Aino. The painter Rei Hino was coming to direct the funeral, falling back on her history as a priestess, and the world champion martial artist Chang Wufei would be there as well. Usagi Chiba, the film star, was coming to mourn the passing of her friend, bringing Mamoru Chiba, also friend to the deceased. Comedian Duo Maxwell had come to bury his long-time friend, as had Trowa Barton, a rising star in rock music. Makoto Maxwell, the chief chef at the best restaurant in Tokyo, would be there as well, along with the pianist Hotaru Tomoe and local sculptor Setsuna Meioh.

Ami's face drained of all color as she finished reading the article, Heero had not yet reached the end but she spoiled it for him anyways. He was already beginning to suspect what she told him. "Heero-chan," she whispered, pointing to the bottom of the screen, "It's us . . . we're the dead ones." She reached out one hand to touch the filmy surface and up popped another article. This time she read just as slowly as he had.

__

Three nights ago, the Tokyo police force lost two of its most valued members in a drug raid. The police are now on the trail of a woman known only as Metallia and the drug lord Millardo Peacecraft as they are wanted for the murder of Lts. Heero and Ami Yui. Several youths, who shall remain unnamed, were apprehended at the scene by the forces that followed, but the two lieutenants had been the first to arrive. After calling for backup, they had attempted to get the bystanders out of the way before things 'got nasty,' as one of the boys told authorities. "No one knew they were cops until Peacecraft recognized them from the paper. They had almost gotten everybody out of the way for when the other cops arrived," the boy elaborated, "But Metallia wasn't happy when she figured out what was going on."

From the stories they heard, the authorities got that this Metallia had taken a child playing nearby and threatened the little girl's life until the officers laid down their weapons. They did as they were told, but Metallia was too 'doped up' to listen to reason as Lt. Yui tried to talk her into releasing the child. "She shot the cop in the head," one girl explained, "Then the other one started going crazy. He tried to pick up his gun again and he actually hit Metallia a few times but then that Millardo [creep] got him in the back. They tried to go on like nothing happened and we were too stoned to get what was going on until the rest of the cops arrived."

Any information pertaining to Metallia or Millardo Peacecraft should be called in to your local police headquarters. The funeral for Lts. Yui will be held tonight, 20:30, at the Tokyo cemetery. Anyone wishing to pay their respects is welcome to attend. To quote Usagi Chiba, a close friend of Lt. Ami Yui, "She was the sweetest person I ever knew. I'm going to--we're all going to--miss her for, well, forever."

Ami smiled. "That sounds very Usagi. Good to see she and Mamoru finally tied the knot."

"So did we, it seems," he whispered in her ear, arms wrapped protectively around her waist.

She nodded. "It's a little strange," she admitted, "Here I'm the dead one and they're all mourning me. I'm used to it being the other way around. But." A deep sighed echoed from deep within her. "We have to get out of here, you realize. Our picture's all over the paper and if anyone recognizes us it could get a little complicated. What do you say we hide out until eight thirty?"

He understood perfectly. "You want to see your friends again?"

Biting her lip and forcing back tears, Ami nodded again. "You-you don't mind, do you?"

Heero shook his head. "Not at all. The pilots will be there too. I haven't seen them in over a year."

"This is going to be hard isn't it?"

"Very."

Her eyes dropped. "Thank you," she whispered.

And it was his turn to be confused. "For what?"

"For being here," she finally forced out, "I-well-you-you don't have to be here. I could just send you back home and you'd be back and out of danger and you wouldn't have to tag along with me everywhere and you could see your friends and talk to them and--ummph!" She would have continued on her self-deprecating tirade had his mouth not covered hers completely, cutting off her words.

When Heero drew his head back again, his eyes were as insistent as his voice. "I rather would spend eternity in hell with you than live a single lifetime without."

**************

as if it was not obvious enough, i don't write newspaper articles. i know that sucked.

you guys are great and i love you to death. can we keep up this 8-9 reviews thing??

responses:

Petra: thanks, i'm glad you thought it was cute. i really tried for it to be. and i'm seriously glad you liked the inuyasha, i wasn't sure if i could pull it off 

suga baybee: i'm glad someone sees you can't rush a writer, but i will be getting chapters out as often as possible

Kaiya: score one for humor, i wasn't entirely sure that it was going to be funny. and a quote . . . 'we'll get along just fine as soon as you realize i'm god'

Sakura: tony the tiger is my hero (not really but oh well). the vampire fic is in progress, but it's seriously dark. as in seriously. as in i took the worst the characters could possibly be and doubled it. ok, so i didn't go that far, but i did make some pretty bad. you may not like what i've done to makoto and haruka and hotaru and rei.

sapphire-dragon: glad you like my work

suisei no mitsukai: a vampire fic is in the works, but it's pretty dark so far. i've kinda warped the characters. email me if you want to find out more

Minimerc: you were review number 7. And thanks for catching that little characterization boo-boo of mine. I seriously had not seen that. perhaps that was when inuyasha showed up? ::guilty grin::

Fate's Child: you *were* number 8, go you! and it is so seriously cool that you love my story!  
fluffy pink bouncy bunny: i did like the whole 'ja ne setsuna-chan.' sarcasam's a bitch


	9. In Which Sadder Things Transpire

Chapter 9

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Eight thirty rolled around more quickly than either of them expected. Ami had looked up several pictures of the two of them so as to know how to alter their appearances. The late Ami Yui had cut her hair just above her shoulders but had retained its unnaturally blue color. Using a preliminary disguise she went out and bought a box of brown hair dye and some makeup. Within mere minutes she had undergone a complete transformation, from a naturally beautiful, blue-haired young woman to a heavily made-up, brunette teen.

Heero was slightly harder to change. Because the deceased couple was easily six years older looking than the living one, Ami's first step was to make him look even younger than he was. Worry lines were erased from his forehead and blonde highlights were added to his hair. Nothing could be done on short notice about his easily recognizable blue eyes, so she bought him a pair of sunglasses to cover them when needed. Clothes too had to be changed for the both of them, not only where theirs slightly too colorful for mourning they were a few centuries too early. Ami hacked her own account ("I'm too predictable.") and withdrew even more money. Black clothes were bought and eight thirty was on their heels. It was time to find the cemetery.

It wasn't too difficult to locate as hover-cars were parked all over. Ami and Heero, now Naru and Nephrite to anyone who asked, simply walked and found themselves a place to stand. From where they were they could each identify their friends, but their friends couldn't identify them. It was a foolproof plan, they would just stand there and observe, each grateful to see those seemingly lost to them. It was perfect.

They hated it.

Ami clung tightly to Heero, her fingers intertwined with those of the hand he had around her waist to tuck her against his side. They surveyed the scene closely, watching intently as two caskets were laid side by side on the ground. Mourners gathered around, but closest to the coffins was a group of thirteen people the two in disguise knew all too well. One by one they approached the coffins to pay their respects.

Usagi was the first, laying a soft white rose on the casket that held her dearest friend, then another on that of her friend's husband. Tears falling freely she walked to the microphone to speak to the crowd as the others listened carefully and placed their own flowers. She was silent for a few moments, watching those in front of her, before she spoke.

"I never wanted to do this." She began slowly, struggling to keep her voice even but not bothering to wipe away the water that spilled down her cheeks, "I never wanted to stand up here and tell all of you how much I loved my best friend and how much I'm going to miss her. I never wanted to give an elegy for Ami. I never wanted to have to say good-bye.

"Heero, too I loved like a brother. He was best friend to my husband and best man at my wedding, and when he and Ami were married I knew they were perfect for each other. Not even Minako's matchmaking could have set it up better. They were never happier than when they were around the other, they lived for each other. And died for each other too, I suppose. They didn't deserve this-"

Her voice choked violently and she almost completely broke down, sobbing uncontrollably until Mamoru arrived onstage to comfort her. His arms holding her tightly she seemed to regain her confidence and, gently wiping her eyes and sniffling, she continued. "We are all going to miss them both. I was looking at the newscreen this morning and found the perfect quote--pardon me for editing it some. 'Three nights ago, Tokyo lost two of its most valued members.' And we did, we really did.

"Aside from being a policewoman, Ami was a treasured part of this community. She was sweet, polite, and courteous to everyone even when she herself was in a bad mood. She was always there when I or anyone needed a shoulder to cry on and she helped in any way she could, on or off the job. Even back in high school there wasn't a night she didn't help me with my homework and as many times as I would call she never got exasperated with me. She cared as much as she could and then some.

"And Heero. When necessary he laid down the law, but underneath that tough exterior he was just as sweet as his wife. He was a dream neighbor and a dream friend. If his help was needed there was nothing he wouldn't do to assist. He and Ami really brought out the best in each other, from the day they met there was nothing but happiness for either of them. It's never fair when anyone dies, but here the fates were especially cruel.

"O God--give them back. I shall keep asking You."

Usagi paused, wiped her tears once again, then forced a smile.

"And for all you idiots out there who think I'm a bimbo with no brain, I wrote that myself. SO insert-non-funeral-appropriate-word OFF!"

Mamoru blushed violently and led her offstage. In the crowd there were a few broken laughs but not many.

Ami watched closely as her friends all paid their last respects to her and her husband of that time. Rei approached quietly, unusually silent, her chin held high but tears falling unheeded. Minako was sobbing openly and Quatre put aside his violin to comfort her. He too cried bitter tears for his friends, but hid his grief for her. Michiru had put away her violin as well, the two of them had been playing a duet for the funeral, and found her sanctity in Haruka's arms. Even the blonde was crying softly. Duo was doing his best to comfort his wife Makoto but they both had tears running down their faces. Even Hotaru, dry-eyed at first, broke down as she said her final farewell to an old friend. Trowa led her back to her seat, a comforting arm around her shoulders. Only Setsuna remained tearless though grief was more than evident behind her eyes. She was holding strong for the rest of them. Just like Ami had done in her own time, Heero realized. Speaking of Ami...

A few drops of water hit his arm. The blue-haired love of his life was tucked securely under his arm, finally allowing herself to cry. The tears fell and her body wracked with sobs but she did not make a sound. He wrapped his other arm around her and held her close, letting her cry against him for as long as she needed. It was a long time but when the tears would no longer fall and she curled up, red-eyed, against his chest, he knew it was time to go.

She agreed.

***

ok, first off i must say that a lot of this scene must be screwed up. i've never been to a funeral so all i had to work from was movies (what a source). and yes, that line of Usagi's--the 'O God' one--is from _A Prayer For Owen Meany_. the line after that i had a lot of fun with, it seemed very Usagi-like.

and now i must sadly announce that this will be the last reality ami and heero visit before this story comes to a close. i have several reasons. a) i seem to be losing my readers. b) i have another story i'm having much more fun writing. c) i don't have the time to write two stories at the same time. and d) this one isn't any fun to write anymore--it has somewhat become the bane of my existence. sorry folks.

Fate's Child: well, someone's a wee bit over-stimulated. no more cappuccinos for you. (read eXiles 1 to get that) anyways, i'm afraid i won't be able to use your idea--if everyone thinks they're dead in this dimension, they'd freak to see them alive again. and there are no senshi/pilots in this dimension either, just every-day, normal, famous people.

Kaiya: glad you liked it. btw, i read the latest installment of your story--good job. a bit confusing, but good job. and a quote: 'how many times do i have to flush you before you'll go away?'

SakuraMona: the vampire fic is in the making--and not quite as dark as I thought it'd be

Serena Yuy: for this, this is the past. for us, it's the future. and this fic will come out somewhat happily-ever-after

Fluffy pink bouncy bunny: this is the last reality I'm going to do (check above), so thanks for the ideas but I won't be using them

Purple hogati: the whole sess/kag comes from my story 'Only In Dreams.' It's not in the manga. And I don't know enough about DBZ to do a crossover

Frigidgemstone: thanks, and good luck to you on your writing


	10. In Which Things Begin To Come To A Close

Chapter 10

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They had stayed in a hotel overnight, still using the names of Naru and Nephrite and careful to stay in character. Two love-struck kids, late teens or early twenties, renting a room for the night. The love-struck part wasn't too hard, but they had both lived through too much to easily pretend to be innocent kids. But they pulled it off and got the best room they could find. Heero did all the talking as Ami refused to say a word. She had not spoken since before the funeral. Once in their room, she crawled onto the bed and was fast asleep, tear tracks still painfully evident on her face. Heero had laid down beside her and wrapped her carefully in his arms.

When he woke up the next morning she had disappeared. He panicked for a few moments before he looked over to the window and saw her sitting out on the balcony. Her feet dangled slightly above the cement ground as she leaned forward in her chair to rest her elbows on the balcony. Her hair, now blue once more, blew gently in the wind, falling across her face and neck but she did nothing about it. Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, Heero crossed the room to her. She jumped slightly when he encircled her waist with his arms but calmed quickly. "Hey, handsome," she whispered.

"Hey, beautiful. Feeling better?"

Ami nodded. "Alternate realities are a real mind-fuck, huh?"

He forced a laugh. "That's one I've never heard you use before."

"It was a favorite phrase of Makoto's. After hearing something for a few decades, you start to pick it up."

For a few moments they just stood like that in silence, holding onto each other. Heero had her tucked tightly against him and ran one hand through her long hair, his lips pressed gently to the back of her head. She began to cry once more, noiseless tears tracking their way down her face, and she shook with sobs. He took it upon himself to rock her gently from side to side, whispering words of comfort and acting as her moral support. He held her for as long as she needed to be held and longer.

"Aw isn't that sweet. Crying make it feel all better?"

They both jerked their heads up as one to see Setsuna floating, in all her evil glory, just inches off the balcony. Behind her, growling and pacing, were the time hounds. The senshi of Pluto cackled maniacally, raising her Garnet Rod high above her head. "Dead Scream!" The words were not whispered as had been her tradition in the past. No, this time she shouted them for all the world to hear.

Ami just barely managed to open a portal beneath her feet for Heero and herself to fall through before the wave of death passed over their heads. When they got to their feet once more in the realm of the Time Gates, Setsuna already stood there waiting for them. An evil smile crossed the face of the older woman and with a mere gesture she tore the key from around Ami's neck. "Now why didn't I think of that before?" she asked herself, laughing maliciously for their benefit.

They were trapped with no way to escape as the hounds slowly closed in around them. Ami flung pound after pound of ice at them but it had no effect, they only got closer. "Ami-chan," Setsuna purred, "Why did you try to run from me? I would have made your death swift, painless even, but you had to try to outwit me. Old age and wisdom will always prevail over youth and vigor. Always remember that, Ami-chan, always remember that."

Ami's small face contorted into a look of pure rage. "What is wisdom when you don't have the brains to use it?" she shot back.

And was immediately rewarded with a blast of energy that blew her back twenty feet, over and past the hounds. The group of dogs instantly tightened their circle around Heero, pacing and licking their nonexistent chops. Setsuna began to laugh once more, the sound not unlike the shriek of a harpie, and Ami winced. "I couldn't have asked for anything more perfect. Separate, I can cause you so much more pain." One side of her mouth curled up, then the other, until her lips curved into a perfect grimace of revenge complete. "Hounds," she said softly, hate resonating in her voice.

"Attack."

"NO!" In less than a split second, Ami remembered how to kill the time hounds. You had to kill their mistress. Without thinking, she acted. Ice pooled in her outstretched palm. No magic, just frost, and it twirled and lengthened until it was long and solid and ready. A slight flick of her wrist sent it spinning through the air to meet its target. Setsuna could easily block magic with nothing more than a thought. She was not prepared for a physical assault.

So when the knife of pure ice imbedded itself to the hilt in her chest, she did not know what had happened until it had.

"NO!" Once again, the word fell from Ami's lips. She didn't even see as the time hounds disappeared in mid-leap, all she saw was a dear friend crumple to the ground, a blade buried in her breast. Ami was at her side in a flash, holding onto Setsuna's hand and pleading for her to come back but it was of no use. The time senshi was dead before she hit the ground. Ami had sacrificed everything.

A thousand years of friendship for one year of love.

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i have this posted for over a week and i get a grand total of 4 reviews. gee, thanks guys.

SakuraMona: the vampire fic is in the making. and it was supposed to be sad.  
Petra: it won't be ami/heero but it will be another ami centered fic. hope you like the ending here so far.  
fluffy pink bouncy bunny: i thought that part was sad too. and I thought the whole going to your own funeral thing was kinda neat (that's why I put it in).  
Kaiya: 'Save a horse, ride a cowboy.' if you don't get it, its probably a good thing.


	11. In Which It Ends

Chapter 11

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'Oh. My. God.'

The three words ran through her head over and over until the never-ending mantra streamed at an unimaginable speed. She shook violently where she knelt, trembling even as she folded Setsuna's hands over her chest. A mere thought dispelled the killing blade and the wound it had created now slowly seeped blood. She blotted the crimson liquid with her own clothes until it was as gone as it could be. Ami stared at her hands, now tinged with a red she knew she would always see. Then, standing, she lifted Pluto's garnet rod and whispered a few words, pointing the staff at the body. Slowly, it sunk into the depths of time.

She then turned. Heero still knelt on the ground, crouched where he had been under attack by the hounds and cradling his left hand. He had held it out as if to protect himself and the little finger had been taken by the spatial displacement. Still trembling but calm, Ami lifted the rod--once more following the instructions it fed directly to her mind--and another quick spell healed the wound. The finger was still gone, but it no long bled nor caused him pain. She smiled weakly. "Congratulations, Heero," she told him. "You're now as immortal as I am. Pluto healing tends to have that effect on people."

He just stared at her. "What do we do now?"

Sighing, she shrugged. "I guess the senshi need to be reborn. Crystal Tokyo needs to come around. The Time Gates need to be guarded until Setsuna grows up again. I think we can manage it." She bit her lip. "I actually have an idea of what we can do about all this," she told him. "But Time won't allow us to mess with people's lives without their permission first. In that last world, I saw soul mates together. Don't you think we can help make that happen again?" With a genuine smile, she told him her idea. He agreed.

With another flick of the garnet rod, four people appeared in front of them. From their own world: Quatre, Trowa, and Duo. From the realms of the dead: Wufei. Before the confusion could start, Ami spoke. "Yes, I am the Ami most of you know. And yes, that is the Heero you know. This is the domain of Time, it is not a dream. I'm offering you the chance to be with the soul mates you never got to meet."

Duo began to laugh. "Yeah, right. I just had a few too many tequilas before bed."

Heero's eyes hardened. "Omae wo korosu."

The braided man gulped. "Never mind, it's him."

Wufei was the next to speak. "Crazy as it sounds, onna, I'll take your offer. It beats being dead."

Quatre studied Ami carefully. "Something tells me you're telling the truth. And if this is a dream, my decision means nothing in the read world. But tell me this--where will you two end up? And what is this about our soul mates?"

"We will be here until the Guardian of Time is able to regain her position. When she arrives, we will be joining you in our rightful places in Crystal Tokyo," Ami explained. "If you accept the offer you will start over completely in this world. If you decline you will not remember this meeting at all. And as for your soul mates, they will be reborn with you. I doubt you will have any trouble finding them." After all, it would be difficult to miss a princess. "Are you in?"

"Anywhere there's a chick that wants me," Duo said with a smile. He walked to where Wufei stood and patted his dead friend on the back. "Wu-man, long time no see."

"Don't call me that."

Quatre shrugged. "I don't see why I couldn't go along with this."

Trowa nodded his consent. "How can you do this?" he wanted to know.

Ami smiled and bowed. "Super Sailor Mercury, last of the sailor senshi, at your service."

Four jaws dropped but before they could say anything they were sent spinning off into their new homes. Ami pretended to dust off her hands. "That was easy enough. Now for the others." Again she followed the instructions given to her by the staff, sorting souls from the realm of the dead until she had the ten she was looking for. Dark, royal purple for Setsuna, the youngest there by millennia. Then black for Hotaru, anguish etched in deeply. Red for Rei, as red as violent blood and then a gossamer pink that was the faded Chibi Usa. Mamoru was as gray as the night, dull and listless compared to the shining silver of his Usagi. The green for Makoto was darker than expected, a forest green deadened with denial. Yellow and aqua, Haruka and Michiru, each tried to out-shine the other, one as flame the other as sparkling waters. Lastly the oldest, Minako as an orange so brilliant it put any other to shame. Guided by the staff, Ami brought them all to the time that was Crystal Tokyo.

From the Gates, Ami and Heero watched them all grow up. Watched them meet and fall in love. Watched as Princess Minako of Venus was helped back onto her horse by a kind stable-hand named Quatre after taking a nasty spill. Watched as Princess Rei of Mars screamed at Wufei, the Martian First General, for interrupting her fire reading. Watched as Princess Makoto of Jupiter threw cookie dough at Prince Duo of Pluto as he chased her around her own kitchen. Watched as Princess Hotaru of Saturn snuck away late at night into the arms of Trowa, Chancellor of Mercury.

And when the time was right, they stepped in and joined their world.

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that's all folks. sorry for those of you who kept reading and wanted more but i really couldn't go on with it--too much school and too much pressure and too many other stories to write. someday i might come back in and add in a few more adventures for poor ami and heero, but i think i've put them through enough already. if you liked this enough that you'd be willing to carry it forward yourself, i'd love to see what happens to these guys in crystal tokyo--whether you keep the focus on ami and heero or take it to some other character. knock yourselves out explaining why saturn is sneaking off to sleep with trowa, or what was so important that wufei had to interrupt a fire reading, or what duo said that made jupiter throw the cookie dough, or why venus was even riding a horse in the first place. just email me if you want to continue it.


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